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Rating: 
Summary: Fantastique!
Review: A perfectly balanced expose of this legendary and highly complex superstar: Amoral in extremis, manic and delusional, but blessed with indomitable human spirit. Excellent historical perspective throughout. A beautifully written biography which does not succumb to the tawdry, despite its detailed narrative of Josephine Baker's pathologically decadent lifestyle. Absolutely the best biography of J.B., bar none. A Must Read for Paris cabaret enthusiasts.
Rating: 
Summary: A fond, passionate portrait of a hard-to-pin-down woman
Review: Josephine Baker was enigmatic during her lifetime and even more so after her death. A chanteuse, a sex symbol, the mother of 12 adopted children, French Resistance heroine, Baker reinvented herself as often as necessary to stay at the top of her trade - whatever that trade was at any given moment. Jean-Claude Baker (one of her 'adopted' children) chronicles her life in this engaging biography with a mix of love, admiration, and incredulity. The lady had balls, and while not a tell-all book, The Hungry Heart does her ample justice.
Rating: 
Summary: THE inside scoop on Miss Josephine
Review: This is a biography of LaBaker written by one of her many adopted children. He gives the inside dish on his mom, including that both she and his adopter father were gay. He points out too that she did have some self-loathing issues regarding her race as well. This book has a great photo section. It helped me to see the ugly side of Josephine that wasn't fully presented in the great movie by HBO. I am not sure it is the best work out there, but it is a must-read for any Josephine fans and scholars. In addition, people that study Black Americans abroad or French naturalized citizens should read this.
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